Angels and Demons
by Aria6
Summary: A fantasy AU fic! Sora is an angel-kin and Riku is a demon-kin. They meet by accident and Riku is taken to be Sora's companion. How will that alter his life? Sora/Riku and some really intense Axel/Roxas too. XD Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Sora couldn't remember being this terrified in his life.

He was only a little angel-kin. His wings were only cherub sized. He should have been in his mother's aerie, not down on the ground helping to hunt demon-kin in their nooks and crags! Well, technically he wasn't helping and he really shouldn't have been there. His older brother, Roxas, was beginning to get very annoyed with him.

"Why did mother have to get sick on today of all days?" Roxas muttered resentfully. "And why couldn't we leave you at home with the servants?" Sora didn't bother to point out that they hadn't been at home, they'd been at the forward camp because his mother wanted to participate in the fray. And he was much too young to be separated from her for a long period. Angel-kin drank in their mother's energy long past when the actual nursing was done and his father had decided since Sora was here, he should watch the battle. But Roxas didn't want to hear any of that. He wanted to jump into the battle too… Sora had overheard that they needed to teach the demon-kin a lesson and it was long overdue. Why the demons needed a lesson he was rather vague on. Were they forgetful?

Sora's thoughts were yanked out of his musings as Roxas made a sound he'd never heard before. It was a half-shriek that terrified him and made him cringe away.

"_There he is!_ I'll get him today!" Sora tried to grab him but it was too late. Roxas was gone, flying into the air after a laughing, redheaded demon-kin. Sora could see flashing black wings and brilliant green eyes before the two clashed in midair. Whimpering in panic, the little angel-kin looked around. His brother had been creating a shield for them both and now it was gone. There was a small tunnel nearby. Sora hesitated as he looked at it. Did he dare go into it? It was undoubtedly a demon-kin tunnel, carved into the cliff. But then a blast of power hit the rock nearby, spraying little pieces of debris. That decided him and Sora squirmed into the tunnel. It was a tight fit at first and he was afraid he would get stuck but it suddenly widened.

"…!" Sora looked around wide-eyed at the demon-kin room he'd slipped into. It was a cellar and extremely dark. He could hardly see and only his hands touching the bottles told him it was a wine cellar. Suddenly a hand gripped his shoulder and Sora stifled a yelp as he saw glowing aquamarine eyes.

"What are you doing out there? Get in here!" Baffled and frightened, the little angel-kin obeyed as the other pulled him into a tiny hideaway under an odd little ramp leading into the wine cellar. Sora found himself pressed tightly against the other and belatedly realized it was a boy, not much older than him. "You couldn't make it to the escape hatches either?"

"Uh, no." Sora prevaricated. This had to be a demon-kin. He was hiding with a demon-kin in a cellar? But at least the other boy hadn't realized what he really was. Although Sora did know how to fight, sort of, and the other child was no bigger than him.

"The tunnels collapsed… I'm Riku, who are you?" The boy was trying to peer at him now and Sora was grateful for the utter darkness of the wine cellar. All he could make out would be Sora's glowing blue eyes and while blue wasn't a common color for demon-kin, it wasn't unknown either.

"I'm Sora." Sora said tentatively. He was afraid but Riku smelled… nice. Sort of musky and sort of spicy. Riku sniffed at him curiously and Sora had to struggle not to lean into it. That was odd. No one had caused that kind of reaction in him before.

"You smell different. Like - like fresh cut grass." Riku murmured and Sora blushed. "It's nice. Weird, but nice." They cuddled together in their tight little hiding place and Sora noticed that Riku's hair was long and silky fine. Riku chuckled. "Your hair is tickling me!"

"Oh, sorry." Sora whispered, embarrassed, but Riku smiled.

"It's fine. I don't remember you, so you probably don't know me either. I just arrived a week ago with my mom and brother. I'm from Night's Nest. Where are you from?" Riku asked and Sora fell into a momentary panic.

"Shadow's Fall." He said the name of the only demon city he could remember. Riku was impressed.

"That far? I didn't think the call to teach the angel-kin a lesson had gone out that far." Sora blinked at the bizarre echo of his father's words. Was that how the demon-kin looked at it? But what was the lesson? Could he ask? Well, why not?

"Riku? What's the lesson?" Sora asked and Riku was a little surprised for a moment.

"Oh. You're almost a baby aren't you?" Sora bristled at that. He could walk and talk! And Riku wasn't that much older. "The angels are asking for too much tribute. I mean, it hurts that we have to make tribute at all, they don't deserve it. But they raised it this year and it's too much. Lazy angel-kin, flying around all day in the clouds." Riku sounded scornful and Sora wanted to protest. He knew the angel-kin did all kinds of important things. But he couldn't say that to Riku.

"Not too lazy to fight." Was all he could think of to say. Riku sighed.

"No, never that. I hope my family is okay. But if they're not, they die with honour." Sora blinked. He'd always been told the demon-kin had no honour and were treacherous as snakes. "I hope your family is okay too."

"Thank you." Sora felt a twist of guilt at that. He was tricking Riku. But what else could he do? He didn't want to be hurt or hurt the other boy. Who would come for them though? His people or Riku's? And what if no one came at all, what would they do? Finally someone did come. Riku hissed at the soft golden light but Sora felt his heart leap. That was angel light!

"Shit. I'll distract them. You try to get out the hole." The outside world would be just as dangerous but at least there Sora would have a chance. Or so Riku thought. Before Sora could stop him Riku darted out and snarled at the angel-kin. To his horror an angel swore and knocked the little demon-kin down, making him cry out.

"No!" Sora darted forward and in front of Riku as a very familiar angel raised a sword. There was a loud curse as his father aborted his swing. "Don't hurt him papa, please!"

"Sora, get away from that thing!" His father ordered but Sora shook his head, turning around so he could cling to Riku who was staring at him with wide eyes. Now that there was light Sora could see the demon-kin had long silvery white hair and he was too young to fly. His wings were little black bat wings and his horns were just little nubs on his forehead.

"You're an angel?" Riku whispered and suddenly squirmed. "Let go-" Sora shook his head and clung tighter. He couldn't let Riku be hurt!

"We won't hurt the demon-kin Sora. Just let him go. We can leave him here." Sora's father, Ven, said soothingly. Sora looked up and happened to see Roxas' face. He wasn't as good at lying as their father.

"No! You're going to hurt him!" Roxas winced and looked down as Ven sighed in frustration. "You… wait, didn't you say something about detonating the cliff if we won? He's too young to fly!" Even if Riku didn't die in the explosion he certainly would when the cliff collapsed. The little demon-kin seemed to accept that stoically although Sora was sure he just didn't want to show his fear to angels. "We can't leave him here!"

"Ventus, we don't have time for this." Another powerful angel, Terra, spoke from behind him. Ven growled something unpleasant and moved swift as the wind, gripping the two children by the back of their shirts.

"We'll sort this out later. For now…" Ventus carried them both out like a pair of kittens. Riku squirmed until Sora gripped his hand. Then the demon-kin stopped and just looked at him. Sora couldn't read anything in his expression. "This is all your fault Roxas. Your mother is going to hear about this." Sora's fiery brother was cowed, both by Ven's displeasure and the wounds he'd taken fighting the red demon-kin. He was looking distinctly battered.

Finally they exited the caverns and Sora heard Riku's sharp intake of breath as he looked at the scattered corpses. Sora felt just as bad… the angel-kin might have won, but they'd done so at a very high price. There were bodies scattered over the shattered stone. Sora couldn't really recognize anyone but Riku started to squirm again until Ventus admonished him harshly. Sora glanced over and winced as he saw the look on Riku's face, like he was struggling not to cry. Had the demon-kin seen someone he recognized? As they left Terra gave a signal and the explosions went off. Sora cringed a little as rock showered down and the angels began flying high into the air. Riku was shivering soon and Sora vaguely recalled that demons didn't do well in cold temperatures. That was why they stayed so close to the land.

They landed on a floating rock and Sora saw with alarm that Riku's lips were beginning to turn blue. The little demon-kin refused to complain though and Ventus didn't seem to care. Sora had to wiggle around and tug on his father's shirt to make Ven pay attention.

"Riku's cold!" Sora told his father, who snorted.

"Who cares?" But Ven relented a little as Sora gave him a tragic look. "Oh, fine. Roxas! Fetch the demon brat a cloak." Roxas looked like he wanted to protest but when along meekly. His father had already torn a strip off him for leaving Sora alone to pursue the redhead. Soon Riku was wrapped in a fine white cloak and his shivers were dying down. Sora was worried though. To him this was warmish. How would Riku survive in the upper reaches? Yet they couldn't just leave him here. Could they?

"Riku…" Sora reached out for him and Riku pulled away, refusing to look at him. "Riku!" Sora put all his hurt in his voice and Riku stopped, lifting his head a bit. Sora could see the soft silver hair drifting around his childish face. His eyes were so hard for someone so young.

"Angel-kin. Why'd you make them bring me here? What's going to happen to me?" Riku said, his tone low and bitter. Sora bit his lip.

"I don't know. But I'm not going to let them hurt you." He said stoutly. Riku just looked at him for a moment then shook his head.

"You can't stop them." Was all he said. Sora started to bristle when he saw his father coming towards them.

"Sora, come. We're leaving." Ventus said abruptly and normally Sora would have obeyed without question. His father could have a temper. But right now there was something far too important at stake for that.

"What about Riku?" Sora demanded, gripping the other boy's hand. He felt Riku hesitate but the other boy didn't pull away. His father scowled at them both then sighed.

"We're leaving him here. His people will find him." Riku snorted faintly and looked away. Sora blinked and shook his head.

"At the forward camp? Papa, this is higher than they fly!" That was in fact why they had put the forward camp on this floating island. The demons were well aware of what the angels were up to but without fortifying magic, they simply couldn't go this high into the air. And demons were bad with magic, except for very specialized and personal skills. Only a demon with fire or ice magic could scout the upper reaches and even if he found angels, what then? The rest of his people couldn't join him to help. "You're leaving him to die." Sora had always thought of his father as the best man in the world. A large part of his innocence slipped away as he realized Ventus would condemn a child to a cold, protracted death. Even if he was a demon-kin.

"Sora, if we take him to the upper reaches he'll die anyway. And we _are not_ taking him to the ground. This raid was a success but the demons are reforming." Ventus realized he was arguing with a child. "Forget it Sora, we're leaving and that's final." Ventus gripped his son, lifting him up and was surprised as Riku came too. "Let go of him Sora!"

"No! It's wrong! Stop it papa! Stop it!" Sora was screaming and the altercation was beginning to attract the attention of the other angels as Ventus tried to pry them apart. It was much harder than it should have been. Sora's hysterical strength was very great.

"Ventus, what is going on?" His mother, Aqua, walked carefully towards them. Ventus paused but Sora didn't loosen his grip, clinging to Riku tightly. The other boy was whimpering softly with pain and Sora winced as he realized he was very bruised. Ventus let go of them and conferred with his mother for a moment.

"Sorry." Sora whispered, letting go of Riku's hands and rubbing one of his bruises. The little boy smiled briefly.

"You're too nice for an angel-kin." Riku said. Sora bridled a little and was about to tell the other that he knew nothing about angel-kin when his mother walked up. Sora clung to Riku again as his mother knelt beside them.

"We can take him with us for now, Sora baby. What's your name?" She asked and Riku hesitated, so Sora answered for him.

"He's Riku! You mean it mama? But how will he live in the upper reaches?" It would do no good if Riku froze to death there. Aqua smiled and began casting a spell. Riku twitched as it settled over him like a protective shroud.

"He should be fine for now, until we can think of something more permanent. Come on Sora, we do have to leave." Most of the other angels were gone already. Reassured, Sora let his mother scoop him up and watched as Terra took Riku. The older angel mostly seemed amused by the entire thing and carried Riku as easily as if he were nothing more than a little piece of fluff.

And they left the land far behind as they flew to the lands of the angels.

* * *

"Hhhcheee!" Riku's sneeze was impressive. Sora giggled and Ventus looked a little pained as the little demon-kin blotted his nose on his sleeve.

It had taken a lot of flying but they'd finally arrived at the Frozen Lily. The seat of the angels, it was a great flying island. The natural magical currents of the world sometimes broke off part of the land and lifted it into the air, making floating islands. Some were impermanent and would eventually wander back down to the land, but others seemed to drift ceaselessly in the upper air. The Frozen Lily was one of the second and a great angel city of white stone had been built there.

"What do you think?" Sora asked his new friend eagerly and Riku struggled to find something good to say. In truth, he didn't like the place. It was more aerial than he was used to and full of magic. The beautiful towers were gravity defying and enough to make any demon nervous. And the city was full of frozen flowers and crystalline trees that would make any demon shudder to look at them. Except maybe one with an ice gift and Riku was too young to be showing a gift of any sort.

"It's pretty." Riku said diplomatically and Sora looked pleased. "…Horrible." He muttered under his breath as soon as he was sure the angel-kin wouldn't hear. "Where's the stone from?" He raised his voice again. It was possible the stone had come from some kind of deposit from the upper reaches but Riku doubted it.

"It's from Journey's End." Aqua supplied the answer and Riku nodded, unsurprised. That was another demon city although it was nowhere near where he'd lived. The demons only had about a dozen cities in all, so he knew the names of every one. Riku blinked as Terra and Aqua carried them both to the centre spire of the city. If angel architecture was even remotely like demon, that position would mean they were a prominent family indeed. "Annunciata!" Aqua called as soon as they landed and a plump angel housekeeper appeared. She was startled and somewhat taken aback by the sight of Riku. "Can you take care of the boys? This little one is going to be staying until we decide what to do with him." Riku looked down at that. Would the angels take him to the edge and throw him off?

"Of course, my lady." The angel recovered quickly and bobbed a curtsy to her mistress before taking control of the two little boys. "Right this way children. And please, call me Ann." Sora was feeling full and refreshed from the contact with his mother and went willingly. Riku followed, wary and suspicious and bundled in his cloak. Even with Aqua's spell he could feel the cold, although it was much better indoors.

Sora was pleased to show Riku his home and took the other boys' hand, dragging him around with an enthusiasm that soon had Ann struggling to keep up. But a few sharp words from her slowed Sora down and Riku couldn't help but smile. His new friend was a bundle of cheerful energy.

_Friend? _Riku suddenly wondered. Was that what Sora was to him? But if the little chipmunk were a demon he wouldn't have hesitated for a second, Sora was just so nice. Did it really matter that he was an angel? And did he have any choice in the matter anyway?

"What are you thinking about?" Sora innocently asked and Riku smiled before he responded.

"You." Sora blushed before glomping Riku and Riku laughed, patting him on the head. Sora couldn't be more than a year younger than him but he acted much, much younger. And Riku was getting an odd feeling from him, like maybe the little angel-kin was a bit starved for love. But why wouldn't the angels treasure the sunny little boy? It didn't make a lot of sense.

Ann decided they both needed some feeding up and soon Riku and Sora both had cookies and milk. Riku eyed the skim of ice on it dubiously, then tentatively broke it with one finger before drinking the milk. It was crisp, achingly cold and very fresh. No doubt it had come from the demons as tribute originally, and with their magic the angels could keep the milk fresh. They certainly weren't raising cows up here.

"Don't leave me?" Sora suddenly said, his voice quiet and fragile. Riku winced, looking down into his milk.

"I'll try not to." Sora just nodded and took his hand for a moment.

No matter what, they were still children. The adults had all the power in their lives.

* * *

Riku looked at the slave chain around his neck with disfavour and Sora looked almost ready to cry. But Ventus and Aqua were firm.

"If he's going to stay with us it will have to be as a house slave. I'm sorry Sora, but that's how it is." Aqua said firmly. House slaves were very rare. Angel-kin did keep demon slaves, but mostly to mine the floating quarries they opened from time to time. A few of the angels who lived in the lower reaches kept demons as house slaves, but it was quite unusual. They would probably be the only household in all of the Frozen Lily with a demon slave.

"We tried to scry for any living family we could deliver him to." Ventus added and Sora winced, moving closer to Riku. "We couldn't find any." Riku accepted that stoically. He'd seen his brother's body in the corpses. Finding out his mother had died as well came as no great shock. And he knew exactly what had happened to the rest of his relatives. Riku looked down, carefully concealing his anger from Sora's parents. It hadn't been their fault although the angels had indirectly been responsible.

"It's fine." Riku said, touching the gold chain with one finger. It wasn't uncomfortable. The links were even quite pretty and the little golden bells that tinkled with his movements were quite lovely. The only problem was what they signified. "I don't mind Sora." That was a flat out lie. But he preferred being a slave to being thrown off the edge of the Frozen Lily. He wouldn't be the least surprised if it came to that. Sora sniffed and hugged him.

"Okay Riku." Sora didn't like it at all. Riku seemed so strong and young and proud, nothing like his mental image of a slave. But if this was the only way he could stay… "You'll never be a slave to me." Sora whispered and Riku smiled although he didn't really trust it. Would Sora still remember his promise when they were both fledging? Somehow, Riku doubted it. But there was really nothing else to do.

"Stay with me Sora. I have some correspondence to work on." Aqua said to her young son and Riku was surprised to see he looked disappointed. Why would spending time with his mother make Sora sad?

He quickly figured out why. Aqua was far too busy writing letters and catching audio messages with magic to really spend any time with Sora. Sora was close enough to take in her energy but was amusing himself playing cat's cradle and other little games with Riku.

"What did you do before I was here?" Riku finally asked. Sora played a card and shrugged.

"Read the books." Riku looked at the books dubiously. Some of them looked interesting but some of them… "A lot of them are really boring. And those that aren't talk about things I don't understand." Sora sounded wistful. He'd tried to read his parents favourite books and hadn't been able to see the charm. He was probably just too young. Riku idly flipped open a book then shook his head at the unfamiliar script. He wasn't sure he could read the angel writings at all. "Want to play King's Cribbage?"

"Sure." Sora had to explain the rules to Riku and soon they were laughing. Aqua glanced up from her work with a smile. Angels rarely had children, especially compared to the demons, so Sora had very few playmates.

Perhaps this would all work out for the best.


	2. Riku and Sora

"Are you sure about this Sora?" Riku sounded very uncomfortable and Sora couldn't blame him. But he gave the other boy a bright smile and hugged him.

"Of course I'm sure!" They had been inseparable for two years. But Sora wasn't a baby anymore and he needed to get proper lessons in reading, writing and arithmetic. As well as magic and whatever other things were deemed necessary for a young angel. And Riku couldn't come with him. Neither of them were comfortable with it but there was no choice in the matter. Sora would be sharing his classes with dozens of other angel-kin and the teachers in the school would never let a demon-kin in the classrooms. For the first time in years, they would be parted. "I'll be back home soon, you'll see." Sora said bravely and Riku frowned.

"Alright." He said in a low tone. Riku reflected bitterly that he should never have let Sora so far into his heart. He was glumly certain that this change would signal the end of their close friendship. Sora would be meeting angels and forging friendships at school. What use would he have then for a demon-kin slave? Other than to throw rocks at. Riku shoved that thought away. He was sure Sora wouldn't do that. The other angels though… "See you later Sora." Sora gave him a hug and ran out of the room as Riku began to tidy it up, blank faced. That was his main duty as Sora's slave. How would that change now?

Riku stayed in Sora's room and waited for him to return. He picked up a book and struggled to read it. No adults had taught him and while Sora had tried, he'd been very bad at helping the demon-kin understand the odd angelic script. Riku was beginning to get the hang of it but it was a lot of effort. The language was similar enough to feel like it ought to be readable yet different enough to be frustrating.

Riku ignored the growling of his stomach with practiced ease. He hadn't gone hungry much since becoming Sora's slave but before that he'd gone without more times than he could count. And he vastly preferred going to bed hungry to calling attention to himself. Maybe if he just stayed out of sight the adult angels wouldn't notice he was still around.

A faint hope. Ann opened the door to Sora's room a bit after lunch time and scowled at him.

"What are you doing lazing around in here?" Riku stifled a sigh and dutifully stood, setting down the book. "The master has said you're to do a full servants work. Come, you start today." Riku wondered if that meant he would still be spending time with Sora at all. If Ventus thought he could separate them that quickly he was out of his mind. Sora would howl. Although Ventus seemed to be pretty tone deaf where his son's feelings were concerned. Riku forgot about it as he concentrated on his work, which was cleaning pots and pans. The caustic cleansers hurt his hands and Riku was panting with effort and faint with hunger as he worked. Riku could hear Sora's voice raised in complaint as he brought out the family dinner tray.

"Papa, you - Riku!" Sora flung himself at his friend and Riku yelped as he had to lift the tray of food to keep the brunette from spilling it everyone.

"Sora, be careful!" Riku admonished him sharply as Sora gave him a tragic look. But Riku refused to be distracted. "There's hot water on this tray!" Sora reluctantly let go of him and Riku placed the tray carefully in front of the family.

"No, don't go!" Riku blinked as Sora glomped him again. He'd never been allowed to eat with the family. What was Sora doing?

"Sora, he shouldn't be here for this discussion." Ventus sounded very annoyed and Riku was suddenly sure he knew what the discussion was about. Sora confirmed it a moment later.

"He's still my best friend! Why are you trying to take him away?" The tragic look Sora gave his mother and father was truly masterful. Riku could only admire it. Aqua was clearly melting but Ventus was made of sterner stuff.

"Sora, you're going to be making angel-kin friends now. You don't need a demon-kin slave." Ventus snapped and Sora turned his sad, hurt eyes on his father.

"Papa, you can't just throw away your friends when something new comes along. That's an awfully mean thing to do." Sora pulled Riku over to the table. "Eat with us." Riku hesitated. Sora was trying to make a point but this was really very uncomfortable.

"Sora!" Ventus sounded exasperated and Aqua laid a hand on his arm, whispering in his ear for a moment. "Ugh… fine, the demon-kin can stay with you. But he is not eating with us." That was just too much. Riku nodded and pulled away, almost grateful. He loved Sora but didn't think he'd be able to eat under his parents gaze. "Go to Sora's room and wait for him there." Riku departed with alacrity but managed to give Sora a smile before he left. The angel-kin returned it, pleased. As he went into Sora's room Riku vaguely wondered if anyone would think to bring him some dinner. They didn't, and Riku was so hungry he was feeling sick when Sora finally arrived in his room. Riku smiled at him as the angel-kin bounced inside and gave him a hug.

"Are you okay Riku?" Sora immediately noticed that his friend was looking a little wan. Riku hesitated then shook his head.

"I'm kind of hungry." He admitted and Sora smiled, relieved.

"Oh, I can fix that!" Sora bounced off to find a servant and Riku reflected on him for a moment. The little angel-kin was so good natured it was almost surreal. Riku had never known anyone like him before and really hoped that going to school wouldn't change things. He still didn't trust it. "Here! Cakes!" Riku eyed the sweets dubiously but ate some anyway. It would help with the hunger pangs although he might be feeling a bit sick tomorrow.

"So how was school?" He asked as they ate. Sora looked a bit ambivalent.

"It was okay. There was a girl I liked, her name is Kairi." Riku had to throttle back a bit of resentment but firmly reminded himself that it was stupid. Sora had to make friends at school. If he didn't, it would be a misery for him. "There's some other kids that are okay but some I don't like so much… hey, would you like to go down to the park? We could play ball."

"Hm, sure." Riku went to grab the specially enchanted cloak Aqua had made for him. The slave chain held the other enchantments he needed to live in the Frozen Lily. Without them he would have frozen quickly. They took out a driftdisk and used it to fly over to the park. Soon, they would be old enough to fly without it. Their wings were both growing and Riku's were much larger than Sora's. But then, he was older. There was a young mother when they landed and she immediately took her child and moved him away, giving Riku a suspicious look. Riku and Sora both ignored it with the ease of long practice.

"Race you to the tree!" Riku called and instantly the two boys were speeding across the frozen ground. Riku managed to get to the crystalline tree just a hair before Sora. "Haha, too slow!" Sora laughed and pulled out the ball.

"Come on, let's play catch!" Soon they were tossing the ball back and forth and managing to keep it interesting by challenging each other to complicated shots. But then a soft, shy, female voice interrupted them.

"Can I play too?" Both of the boys turned, startled. Riku blinked at the pretty angel-kin in a pink little dress. She had auburn hair, blue eyes and a kind smile.

"Kairi!" Riku really had to force down his jealousy as Sora greeted her happily. She seemed very nice, he was sure she would be a good friend for Sora. "This is my best friend, the one I told you about."

"Riku?" Kairi smiled and offered him a hand to shake. Riku felt a bit of his resentment melt as he shook her hand. It was hard to say for sure but she really did seem very nice. "I'm glad to meet you. Sora has had so much to say about you."

"It's all lies." Riku said automatically and Sora gave him a tragic look as Kairi laughed. "He thinks I'm much better than I am."

"Oh, I doubt that." Riku smiled faintly as he realized she was a lot like Sora. Very kind hearted. If only all angels were like that, maybe they would even deserve the tribute the demons gave them. A pity they weren't. Riku shook the thought away and tossed the ball to Kairi who fielded it with a laugh. They played tag for a while, then Hide and Seek before they all had to go home. Kairi waved as she got onto her driftdisk and the two boys waved back.

"She likes you." Riku observed neutrally and Sora laughed. He looked at the brunette, startled, as his friend poked him in the side.

"She likes you too!" That silenced Riku for a moment. Was Sora right? Did Kairi… then he noticed that Sora was smiling brightly. Wait…

"Do you mean as a friend?" He asked cautiously and Sora looked puzzled.

"Well of course! What else would I mean?" Riku stared at him for a moment then laughed. Sora pouted cutely as he piloted the driftdisk.

"Sora, you're such a baby sometimes!" Riku wasn't much older but he'd already grasped that there was different kinds of liking, and he'd noticed that girls could be rather interesting. Although he was far more interested in Sora. If only the little angel weren't so completely oblivious.

"I am not! You're just a big poopy head." That made Riku laugh harder and Sora pouted some more. "Hmph!"

When they arrived home, though, they found things were in a bit of an uproar.

"Are you an idiot? Why do you keep pursuing that feathered demon?" Ventus was having a fight with a battered, singed looking Roxas. Sora drew an unhappy breath at the sight of his brothers injuries. Someone had definitely put him through a wringer. Then he blinked.

"Demons can have feathers?" He hadn't known that. Riku nodded before speaking quietly in his ear.

"Sometimes we have albino babies with feathers. They look like angels. It's kind of weird but we just dye the feathers." Sora gave Riku a startled look. Albino babies with feathers? They would look just like angels! Although he supposed they wouldn't be able to stand the cold like most demons. But then, a lot of angels used magic to make themselves more comfortable in the high reaches. What did this mean?

The thought was driven out of his mind as Roxas and Ventus really started yelling at each other. Sora had never seen them this upset before and it frightened him. Even Riku was cowed and clearly wanted no part of it.

"I hate you! I hate you and I'm leaving!" Sora tried to grab Roxas as he ran past but couldn't. He'd never been that close to his brother, the age difference was just too great but he didn't want to see Roxas go. Where would Roxas go? He had no idea. Would Roxas come back?

"Roxas!" Ventus spread his wings and flew after his son as Sora began to cry. Riku hugged his friend and patted him on the back, reflecting on Sora's family.

"Roxas is really obsessed over that demon." This time, Riku thought Ventus was in the right. Why was Roxas risking his life hunting down and fighting what had to be a demon champion or templar? Sora nodded, sniffling.

"He beat Roxas on his first battle but spared his life. Ever since then Roxas has been determined to beat him. To prove that he can." Sora said sadly and Riku blinked. While that wasn't much of a thank you for sparing his life, it actually did make a certain amount of sense. "The demon keeps mocking him." Sora sounded very unhappy and Riku sighed.

"Hopefully he'll be okay." Although Riku supposed he should hope the demon won. Still, he couldn't wish that kind of pain on Sora. "C'mon, let's go to bed." It was getting late and Sora had school tomorrow. The little angel nodded sadly and followed Riku inside.

What else was there to do?

* * *

The years passed slowly and gradually the angel-kin and demon-kin both fledged. Riku tested strengthening wings carefully although he wasn't allowed to fly without Sora. But soon the two of them were darting around the tower and laughing as they learned dozens of new games they could play. Ventus took them both to the floating rock gardens and Riku and Sora played hide and seek with Kairi high in the air.

Sora and Kairi began taking history and religion classes which led to some uncomfortable questions.

"I can't believe all this Kairi." Sora said to her. She looked troubled as Riku watched, uncomprehendingly. "Demon-kin aren't evil like that. They just aren't!" Sora knew Riku intimately now although he didn't know much about the demon-kin's past. Riku didn't like to talk about it and Sora respected that. But he knew Riku wasn't evil. He was just a person and a very loyal friend.

"Why, what are your books saying?" Riku peered at it but couldn't make it out. He'd somewhat mastered the angel's script, which seemed to be a dialect of the demon religious tongue. But he still couldn't read it upside down. Sora gave Kairi an agonized look and she sighed.

"They're talking about how the demons were barred from heaven by their impure natures." She explained gently and Riku snorted. "And the history between our people which is… unfavorable to the demons."

"Well, of course. That's hardly a surprise. Some of it is probably even true." Riku said grumpily. His mother had been able to give chapter and verse on the evils of their own rulers and demon society had only got worse over time. "What exactly were they saying?" Sora squirmed and looked at Kairi who sighed again.

"That the demons don't understand the importance of heaven's work and keep back tribute out of selfishness." She said briefly and Riku felt his anger flare.

"And why should we understand the importance of heaven's work? What good does it do to us?" Riku said flatly. "Except to make us starve. Mama said that some Lords of the Cities do fleece the people and hold back tribute then blame it on the angels. But Lord Creon wasn't or Dream's End wouldn't have broken." Sora and Kairi both stared at him, not understanding. "You haven't heard of Dream's End?"

"Uh, no." Kairi said cautiously as Sora shook his head. Riku snorted.

"You should look it up. They couldn't have blotted out any mention of an entire city and I'd like to see what the angels made of it." Riku sighed and began to explain. "Dream's End was a city in the middle of the Golden Plains. It was settled so long ago no one remembers who founded it. It was never powerful or rich. Just a small provincial city surrounded by farms. It made the Lord of the City a decent living, nothing more." The two angels listened, curious and worried. So far this didn't sound like a tale of tragedy. "Then there was a drought. A great drought that lasted years. The first two years the angels lowered the tribute but the third they would not. They said that the harvests weren't that bad, that Lord Creon was lying to them. But the people were hungry already and Lord Creon knew that if he gave up any of the harvest they would never live. The angels finally struck and defeated him and his forces in combat. They weren't very good forces to begin with and had been weakened by the drought. Then they demanded the tribute from Lord Creon." Riku paused, remembering the hate on his mother's face as she told this story. "He told them that they couldn't take blood from a stone and they could kill him, but they would gain nothing but barren earth. The angels killed him and took their tribute from the harvest, leaving nothing. The women and children all tried to leave but most starved to death." Riku shrugged as Sora looked at him in horror and Kairi swallowed. "There's nothing there now but broken stone and empty grasslands. The drought ended, but we're not stupid. Why go back?"

"How do you know all this?" Kairi had to ask. Was Riku just repeating something he'd heard? Riku smiled briefly.

"My mother was one of those children. She was lucky. She and Grandma survived eating bugs and managed to make it to Night's Nest. Grandma didn't live long but Mother was fledged and managed to survive." Riku decided not to tell them about the rest of the family history. Not yet, anyway. "That's why we answered the call for Lord Zapris. The crippling pox hit his people hard but do the angels care that the steel production went down? Of course not." Riku's mother's comments about Lord Zapris hadn't been as complimentary as for Lord Creon, but she had still thought the angels demands were ridiculous. And the Lord himself had headed the group that had gone to defend the likeliest points for attack so he hadn't lacked for courage.

"It can't be that simple Riku." Kairi cut in. She didn't really believe her own people's histories but she wasn't about to believe the demon version either. They had just as many reasons to twist things. Riku looked at her a moment and nodded.

"I know it's not that simple Kairi. Mother could go on about how most of the demon rulers are corrupt and mismanage things. But what DO you people do for us? What do we get for all this tribute we give you? What is heaven's work that's so important? Because none of the demons know anymore and we don't respect you angels. You're just another weight on our back." Riku shook his head. "That's how demons see things. You can tell your teachers if you want." He wondered how the teachers would react to that. Probably not well, but you never knew. Kairi looked troubled but Sora was determined.

"I will! I'll ask them." He promised and Riku frowned, suddenly worried.

"Don't get in trouble." He warned his friend but he had a feeling Sora wouldn't listen. He couldn't just let an injustice pass by… that wasn't his nature. Riku felt very uneasy as he thought about that.

Society often didn't appreciate that sort of thing.

* * *

"Fuck that fucking demon! FUCK!"

"Tell us how you really feel." Riku said in a monotone and winced as Sora slapped him on the shoulder. "Ow." Fortunately Roxas hadn't heard his little comment. The blonde was looking worse for wear. He was covered in burns and half his feathers had been torn out, but he was still alive and incredibly pissed off.

"Roxas, you keep attacking him. He's sort of entitled to defend himself." Sora pointed out reasonably. Although he wondered how Roxas kept finding the redhead so easily. That part was a bit odd. Roxas stopped his pacing to glare at his younger brother.

"You and your stupid demon pet!" Roxas snarled and Sora gave him a tragic look. "Don't look at me like that! You don't know anything! I'm going to get that demon if it's the last thing I do." He stalked off as Riku rolled his eyes.

"At this rate it will be." By now Riku was sure Roxas was picking fights with a templar. The most elite of all demon warriors, they had rare gifts of power or sometimes magic. Angels had magic as a matter of course but templars were an exception for demons. "I'm amazed that demon hasn't killed him yet." For some reason the templar had to be playing with Roxas. Sora looked depressed and Riku put an arm around him, trying to comfort him. "I'm sure he'll be fine. I mean, the templar hasn't killed him yet. Maybe he doesn't want to."

"That's not really reassuring." Sora said tartly and Riku had to grin.

"Aw, my little boy is growing up. Afraid of what he might want with your cute brother?" Sora just looked puzzled and Riku sighed. "Nevermind. Where are we meeting Kairi?"

"Down by the ice pond… what did you mean?" Sora demanded and Riku contemplated trying to explain same sex attractions to his friend. Why weren't his parents doing this? Riku had grown up in Night's Nest and had learned about perversions of all sorts at an early age.

"Well, Sora, when a boy loves a boy sometimes they kiss and show their love." Riku said patiently and Sora blinked.

"Boys can love boys? Wait, what would this have to do with Roxas and the demon?" Sora asked innocently and Riku closed his eyes for a moment in mental pain.

"Sometimes it can be a bit one sided Sora. The demon might _like _your brother, if you know what I mean." Sora blushed brightly as he understood what Riku was saying. "Or it might just be lust. It probably is just lust. If that's what it is at all. Maybe Roxas just amuses him." Although if that was the case Riku thought the redhead had to have a seriously perverted sense of humour.

"Oh." Sora was silent as they flew over to the ice pond. They both sat on the edge, looking down at frozen water. "Riku?"

"Hm?" Riku was staring at his own reflection and unaware of the change in Sora's voice. Although the other boy caught his attention quickly as he rested a hand on his arm. Riku lifted his gaze to meet beautiful blue eyes.

"Do you like me?" After their earlier conversation there was no doubt of his meaning and Riku's breath caught in his throat.

"Sora." Riku leaned towards him, tilting his head to one side so his horns wouldn't hit Sora's forehead. They'd grown out some time ago and were sharp midnight curls, flowing back into his hair. Sora's eyes seemed to glow as their lips tentatively met -

"Hi guys!" Sora and Riku jerked away from each other as if they'd been burned. Kairi was walking up, completely innocent and smiling. "What are you doing?"

"Uh, just looking at the pond." Sora said innocently and Riku had to stifle a laugh. They exchanged a look that was very warm and Riku felt so happy as Sora took his hand.

He'd been so afraid his friend wouldn't feel the same way.


	3. Sex Times Two

Roxas crouched on the rocky crag and cursed the demon.

He knew the redheaded demon-kin was coming here. _How_ he knew was a great mystery and Roxas hadn't told anyone about his ability to find the demon. They would probably try to stop it and Roxas didn't want that. He wanted to kill the bastard!

Beautiful black feathers flashed below him and Roxas surged from his position with a cry. The demon didn't seem to notice him and just continued in his flight into - what? Roxas suddenly realized something was wrong but it was too late to abort his plunge.

The great winds took him and Roxas realized this was something rare and very dangerous, a spot in the lower reaches where the high winds swept to earth. What was the demon playing at, heading directly into it? But Roxas had no choice now, it was ride the winds or die. His muscles burned as he dodged flying, arching rocks and kept the demon in sight. He was not going to let the demon get away! He seemed to move so gracefully, dodging the stones and riding the high winds. But Roxas was gaining.

Roxas yelped in pain as a sharp edge tore open his leg and another rock hit his wing. It didn't break but he felt the strain all through his body and had trouble correcting his flight. The demon didn't look back and Roxas redoubled his efforts, ignoring the blood coursing from the deep gash in his leg.

Finally they broke through and the abrupt loss of the high winds seemed to drain him of strength. The world swam around him and Roxas struggled to stay aloft, sagging and sinking down towards the ground. No, not the ground, the sea. Roxas knew intellectually that if he landed in the sea he was done for. The swells were huge, he'd never be able to take off from that. Then warm arms were suddenly around him and Roxas blinked as he saw flashing red and black.

Then unconsciousness overcame him and he knew nothing more.

* * *

Roxas opened his eyes blearily, feeling pain in every line of his body. At first all he saw was darkness and for a moment he was confused.

_The demon-kin!_ Roxas tried to sit up and had to stop as pain ripped through his wings. Glancing at them he saw they looked undamaged but feathers could hide a multitude of bruises. He was sitting on cold stone and Roxas blinked as he realized he was in a floating island. A small cave had been dug into this low flying rock and had actually been roughly furnished. Roxas looked down at the cushions he was lying in and saw they were a rag bag assortment of colors, tasselled and decorated with threads and seashells. Someone had bandaged his leg although it hurt horribly when he tried to move.

"Well well, look who's awake." A familiar voice said and Roxas started violently as a green eyed, redheaded demon-kin stepped out in front of him. His wings were feathered like an angel but pitch black and he had no horns. If it hadn't been for the color of his wings he could have been an angel. Well, and that wicked smile he was wearing. "You followed me into the Cauldron. I didn't think even you would have the guts for that."

"The what?" Roxas snapped and the demon's smile widened into a grin.

"You didn't know? Such a child. That was the Cauldron, also known as Love's Run. An old demon landmark and an ancient ritual, not that anyone does it anymore… although I suppose we have." That seemed to amuse the demon greatly. "My name is Axel, got it memorized? What's yours?"

"Roxas. Commit it to memory." Axel laughed at the corruption of his catchphrase and Roxas wanted to hit him. How could the demon be so damned cheerful? It was annoying! "Why did you bring me here?"

"Where else could I bring you?" Axel asked as he took a seat on the cushions and began rummaging through a black leather bag. "Hm. Rations are limited but I have something you could eat. Grain bar? Sausage? Why has my yoghurt got ants in?" Axel muttered, vexed at the condition of his supplies as Roxas blanched. Ants?

"I'll pass - oh my god are you eating that?!?" Axel just looked at him for a moment as he dipped his fingers into the yoghurt then ate it, ants and all. Roxas had to suppress the urge to hurl.

"Can't be wasting food and it's still good, it just has ants in. I'll be having words with the guy who sold it to me though, you better believe it. Bad storage." Roxas had to look away as the redhead licked off his long fingers. If he hadn't sounded so matter of fact, Roxas would have thought he was doing it just to gross him out.

"You didn't answer my question. Why did you bring me here instead of letting me fall into the sea?" Roxas asked and Axel paused his munching for a moment, then smiled.

"Perhaps because I would miss you, my beloved enemy." Roxas stared at him and Axel laughed. "Besides, it would be very rude to let the one who finished Love's Run with me drop into the water. Did you know that by the old customs, we'd be married?"

"What?!?" Roxas felt like his brain had just fried. Axel nodded as he chewed.

"S'truth. That's what the Cauldron was for back then, a wedding ceremony for the warrior castes. If you and your beloved made it all the way through to the other side, intact and together than the Goddess favoured the union and you're married. If you got through but in different locations than it wasn't favoured and while you could still marry the normal way, you'd better think about breaking up. And if one or both people didn't survive, well, that was the will of the Goddess. You can see why the warrior caste was into this." Axel stood, finishing the last of the yoghurt and taking the earthenware container to the entrance and tossing it out into the ocean. "There, all done."

"I am not married to you. And what would demons know of the Goddess anyway?" Roxas grumped. Angel belief was that demon-kin were demons because the Goddess had turned her face from them. Axel lifted his eyebrows and shrugged.

"I'm not a holy freak like Lex, but we know the Green Lady holds the land. We are her chosen people that till the earth and live in the midst of green life. You angels have lost sight of Her nature." Roxas blinked. He wasn't very religious either, really, but that sounded almost heretical. And he'd never heard the Goddess called the Green Lady. Were they even talking about the same thing? "But who cares anyway. You just turn up like a bad penny angel-kin. Whatever am I to do with you?" Axel said whimsically and Roxas scowled.

"Just let me leave." Although Roxas was unhappily aware that that wouldn't solve anything between them. Axel made a small humming sound and shook his head. Then Roxas blinked as the redhead moved with lightning swiftness, pinning him down into the cushions, his face within kissing distance. "Wha…?!?"

"Come on Roxas. Admit what you really want from me. It's not hate that keeps bringing us together like this, not really." Axel's hand on his thigh and the sight of his beautiful green eyes and handsome face so _close_ and right _there_ made Roxas swallow convulsively. Lust hit him with the force of a tidal wave and Axel glanced down, his green eyes laughing. Roxas followed his gaze and blushed as he realized his erection was painfully obvious.

"A-Axel I really don't - ngh!" Roxas groaned as hot hands opened his pants, freeing his length from its confines. Hot, callused fingers began stroking him and Roxas was vaguely aware that Axel had found another earthenware jar, this one tiny and full of oil. The oil made everything better, made Axel's fingers glide over his skin in ways that teased and enthralled him.

"But you do. It's why you've been chasing me. It's why you made the Run." Axel murmured in his ear as Roxas' hips bucked. Axel kissed his throat and Roxas ran his fingers through bright red spikes. Was Axel right? Was _this_ what he'd wanted from the demon-kin the whole time? His body was saying yes and Roxas couldn't find the will to resist. But he was damned if he'd just take this lying down!

"Wha - oof!" Axel was surprised as Roxas suddenly turned the tables on him, knocking him onto his back in the cushions. "Hey, careful, the oil!" Roxas glanced over at the tiny jar, open on the ground. He'd almost knocked it over but it was in easy reaching distance now. Roxas kicked off the rest of his pants and worked on pulling Axel's down. Not to his surprise, the redhead was hard. Roxas took a bit of the oil and began slowly grinding their hips together, using a hand to guide them and get some real friction going. The oil smoothed all the rough edges, making each thrust feel glorious. Roxas was panting and heard Axel muttering something in a dialect he couldn't understand. It was just enough like the common tongue to be frustrating. Then the redhead surged up against him and he forgot to care.

The passion increased with every thrust and Roxas reached down with one hand to guide them, make it better. He looked into Axel's face, the way the demon's eyes glowed and his hair was dampened with sweat and suddenly knew Axel was right. This _was_ what he'd always wanted from the redhead. But how could this be?

"_Ulastcha. Yamra! Vri!"_ Roxas understood the words but couldn't grasp the significance of a demon speaking in the old temple tongue. The pleasure was overwhelming and he finally let himself go, feeling the intense pleasure of his release. Axel followed and his words dissolved into a cry, his release wetting them both. They lay together for a long moment, exhausted, before Roxas finally shifted.

"Eww, spooge." He muttered as he looked down at his white shirt. He was a mess and if anything, Axel was worse. His black shirt showed the stains plainly. The demon-kin laughed softly and Roxas frowned, looking up into his face. Axel was smiling, his green eyes warm and loving.

"I've had worse fluids on me in my time." Axel murmured as he gently nuzzled warm, creamy skin. Roxas sighed and leaned into the caress for a moment.

"This is crazy. We're a demon and an angel, how can this be?" Roxas said more to himself than anything and felt Axel shrug.

"Got me. All I know is that it is." Axel pulled the blonde down for a kiss, black wings stretching and framing them both with feathers. Roxas lifted his wings in answer and sighed as they finally parted. Then he winced as his leg sent another jolt of pain through him. "Sorry. I don't have any healing magic, it's just not my thing."

"Me neither." Roxas wasn't particularly surprised by that. Angels who really excelled in combat tended to not be the best at healing and he was sure it was the same for demons. "I guess I'll have to stay here for a while." Axel's grin was bright and Roxas felt a strange warmth in his stomach. Was this really love?

"Good." Axel's lips found his again and Roxas found that he didn't care.

If this wasn't love, it was close enough.

* * *

"Sora, you're really worrying me." Riku bit his lip as Sora looked obstinate.

The young demon-kin was beginning to wish he'd never told his friend the demon's side of things. There were plenty of records of Dream's End in the angel's archives and while everything was written from the angel perspective it wasn't really too hard to Sora to confirm the basics of Riku's story. It had been remarkable the ways the historians had tried to twist things to put the blame on the demons, but it hadn't been believable. Not for someone who had heard the demon's story, anyway. For a child already primed to hate them it would probably have been different.

Sora was doing papers and presenting arguments for his class that gave a more balanced viewpoint of events. And his teachers didn't like it. At all. Sora's grades were terrible despite work that even his parents had to admit was brilliant. Ventus was very angry at the whole thing… both at Riku for 'corrupting' his son and the teachers who were giving biased grades. Despite his hatred for the demon-kin Ventus passionately believed in fairness and he did not believe Sora's marks were fair. Aqua was a bit different. She had tried many times to get her son to do something more socially acceptable, completely ignoring the issue of the demon-kin and fairness in favor of practicality. And practicality said that Sora needed to fit in and stop making waves. It was an argument Riku empathized with.

"It's the truth Riku. They deserve to know the truth." Sora said stoutly and Riku sighed, reaching up to scratch the base of his horns.

"No they don't. They deserve a good kick in the head." Riku contradicted his friend. "Sora, you're just making the teachers mad and the rest of the students avoid you. Why don't you do a report on Storm Heart's death?" That cities death had been a clear case of demon mismanagement compounded by angelic demands. Demon history didn't really admit it but Riku thought the angel-kin account of events was a lot more plausible in this case. The most telling fact was that the demons had rebuilt on the ruins and named the new city Traitor's Heart. They might not admit it but demons usually knew who was at fault. And while they would rebuild on the remains of a city that had committed suicide, they wouldn't go back to one that was killed.

"Riku, the point is that I'm trying to correct things, not just parrot back what's already in the histories." Sora sounded exasperated with him and Riku glowered at him a moment.

"I know that! That's the problem. No one _wants_ to correct anything and you're just making them mad! You might as well be trying to convince the population of Night's Nest to take up celibacy. Except worse since in Night's Nest they'd just throw a lot of rotten vegetables at you." Riku was hazy on what could happen here as Sora got older but he didn't think vegetables would be involved.

"Riku… I can't just give up. This isn't right." Sora was sounding really distressed now. "Don't you care? About all those women and children…?" Riku winced.

"Of course I care! I was one of those children." Riku would never forget what hunger felt like and how hard he had spent time by the river all through the summer… not to swim, but rather to dig up mud tubers to eat. They had tasted like sawdust but had eased the ache in his stomach for a while. "But I love you. I care about you more than anything in the world." Sora's eyes misted over and he suddenly hugged Riku tightly.

"I love you too Riku." Sora murmured and Riku sniffed. "We'll be okay. Don't worry, it'll all be fine." Riku wished he could believe that but he'd seen too many things go entirely wrong.

"Okay." Ultimately, he couldn't stop Sora. Even if he thought his friend was completely insane. "I'll be right behind you, whatever you do. Just think about it, please?" Riku asked him and Sora hesitated before he nodded.

"I'll think about it." Sora didn't really like the way he was worrying his friends and his family. But something really needed to be done.

Lying just wasn't right.

* * *

"Sora." Riku murmured in his friend's ear as they lay together in bed. They were still sharing a bed and Sora's parents hadn't seemed to realize there might be issues with that as they got older. It made Riku smirk a little. Just because the two of them would never even consider having sex with a demon-kin they assumed Sora must feel the same way.

"Mmm, Riku." Sora whispered as he slid his hands over Riku's chest. They were both naked and he was feeling a bit nervous about it. They were both still virgins although Sora had managed to locate some very useful books about sex in the library and Riku had some knowledge from observation. Sora gasped softly as he felt Riku's hotter skin against his and looked into his beautiful aquamarine eyes. Riku smiled and lowered his head to gently kiss him.

"You're so cute Sora." Riku murmured and Sora managed a pout before Riku moved down a bit, nuzzling his chest and licking a nipple in a quick, teasing movement. Sora gasped and felt a definite stirring a lower, a flash of desire for his friend. But…

"Riku, I'm scared." Sora hated to admit it but the books weren't enough. They were mostly about male/female interactions and while he'd found some homoerotic fiction it hadn't been much. Riku lifted his head, meeting big blue eyes and seeing Sora's worried expression.

"I am too really." Riku admitted and from the look on Sora's face, that wasn't reassuring. "But we'll figure it out. It can't be that hard. People do it all the time and enjoy it." Riku was sure of that from things he'd seen in Night's Nest. Although how much the prostitutes had enjoyed it was an open question. Sora swallowed and nodded. "Uh, did you want to go inside me?" Riku wasn't sure he wanted that but he really didn't want to hurt Sora. Sora hesitated.

"If you think I should…" Sora was looking a bit unhappy though and Riku looked at him curiously. "This – I don't know. It just seems to lack spontaneity." Riku blinked then laughed as he cuddled Sora close.

"Sora, I think that's for when you already know how to screw. I think spontaneity would be pretty painful for a first time!" Bathroom sex might be really hot but not when there was a real danger of hurting your partner. Sora chewed his lip for a moment and nodded.

Their communication turned non-verbal after that. They explored each other, both marveling at the other's reactions and the pleasure it gave them. There were more soft kisses and touches before the desire was too much. Sora gently touched Riku, trying to open him up the way one of the books described. Riku closed his eyes and relaxed, trying to get used to the strange feeling.

"I'm not hurting you, am I?" Sora stopped, worried and Riku shook his head.

"It's okay." It felt odd but Sora was really being very gentle. Riku didn't feel the sting much at all as his friend carefully worked one finger in, coated with oil. One gradually became two, then three and Riku began to feel a bit of pain again. "…Ow. No more, please." Riku muttered. He was sure four fingers would really hurt. Sora nodded and nuzzled him lovingly as he moved his fingers and Riku gasped as the brunette found something that felt really good inside him.

"Nnn!" Riku groaned in frustration as Sora stopped, alarmed. "Do that again!" Sora blinked and obeyed, finding that place again and slowly stroking it. Riku moaned, his head slipping back and exposing his pale throat. Sora squeaked faintly as he saw Riku's cock jump at the stimulation. Then he pulled his hands away, making Riku squirm and hiss. But the demon-kin stopped as he saw Sora working the oil over his own cock. "Okay." Riku swallowed nervously before spreading out his legs a bit more for Sora. He was worried about this but he was sure Sora would enjoy it so –

"Ah!" Sora gasped sharply as he slowly began pressing into his friend. Riku was so hot there and almost painfully tight. Riku muttered something in the demon language that he couldn't understand, but didn't protest as Sora began slowly thrusting into him. It hurt, quite a bit in fact but Riku could still feel the pleasure under it, the feeling he'd gotten just a moment ago. Then Sora brushed that spot again and Riku cried out in pleasure as his mind shut down.

The lovemaking was quick and a little awkward, as first times usually are. But it felt good and Sora managed to get Riku there first. The silver haired demon-kin released with a cry of pleasure, wings tightening and trembling as the intense feeling rolled over him. Sora came a moment later with a matching cry, his white, feathered wings jerking up and fluttering a little at the pleasure. Then they collapsed together, spent and gasping.

Neither one was aware of a disapproving maid listening at the door.

* * *

Unfortunately, the maid did not report what she had heard to Ventus and Aqua. It would have been better for them if she had. There would likely have been very negative repercussions for Riku but Ventus and Aqua did care for Sora. They would have done what they saw as being in his best interest.

Instead the gossip traveled through the servants, getting juicier along the way. And by now there were plenty of people who did not wish Sora well. His attitudes were well known and he was really an adult now. Too old to simply be dismissed as a child. So his affair with his demon-kin slave provided a final push for something the elders of the angels had already been contemplating.

"What is going on Terra?" Ventus sounded angry and Terra didn't look at all happy as Sora and Riku were escorted out of their home by several of the servants. Riku blinked as several soldiers leveled their weapons at him and hunched his wings, trying to look as small as possible.

"I'm sorry Ventus. But this is for the best." Terra sounded like he really meant that and Sora bit his lip as a tall angel with white hair and spectacular wings stepped forward.

"I am Master Xehanort of the Council of Light. Your son and his demon-kin are to be banished from the Frozen Lily and all other angel cities." Ventus stared, shocked into silence as the man looked at him, his eyes cool and remote. "They have an hour to gather up any items they wish to take with them."

"Wh – what? This is madness! He's just a boy!" Ventus immediately argued as Sora and Riku exchanged horrified looks. "We weren't informed of a hearing!"

"You did not need to. Sora has been an adult for a year and he is currently engaged in a heretical relationship with his demon-kin slave." Xehanort said evenly and Ventus paled before he turned to glare at Sora. Sora winced and looked away as Riku looked down at his feet. "His projects have made his inclinations plain. We do not need such among Heaven. Put what he needs together or he will be exiled with nothing." Ventus drew in a breath to protest further but suddenly seemed to realize it was useless. He nodded sharply and stalked back into the tower as Sora and Riku followed, Sora trailing behind. He wasn't sure what all of this meant but he understood his father's temper.

"I'll put together food for you. Get your clothes." Ventus said and Sora fluttered his wings for a moment.

"Where are they sending me father?" Sora sounded distressed and Ventus' eyes flashed for a moment before his expression turned sad.

"I'm not sure. Somewhere on the ground." Sora and Riku exchanged a look. All the ground was demon territory by default. "Riku… take care of him." Ventus blamed Riku for most of this but if anyone could help Sora now, it would be the demon-kin. Riku nodded cautiously. "Now go. Hurry." The two boys hurried off as Ventus began putting a pack together and contemplated how he would explain this to Aqua.

He couldn't bear to think about the dangers Sora would face in the realm of the demons.


	4. The Book

"Wh-where are we Riku?" Sora sounded hideously distressed and Riku didn't blame him a bit. The other boy was having trouble breathing and Riku inwardly cursed the callous angels that had brought them here. It had been a long flight. Why hadn't they just dumped them some place below the Frozen Lily rather than going completely out of their way to land them in a sweltering rainforest?

"I don't know. Cast some spells on yourself Sora." Sora nodded, wiping away the sweat from his forehead and casting more spells to acclimatize him to the heat. "This place is ancient." Riku had never seen anything like it in his life.

They had been dumped into ancient ruins, carved out of old stone. It was broken and overrun with vines and flowers now, but beneath that Riku could see the fine carvings made out of equally fine marble. They seemed to be friezes of demons and angels. Riku's lips twisted slightly as he saw the demons seemed to be making offerings too and kneeling before the angels. They walked through the ruins looking for food, water and shelter and Riku helped Sora over a few broken spots.

"Here." Riku was surprised to see part of this old place seemed to be standing. It was a wide, open area but the marble ceiling would provide some shade. There was also a small fountain, still full of water and being constantly refreshed by the statue in the middle. Riku gasped faintly as he recognized it and Sora lifted his head, sweat matting down his spiky brown hair.

"Oh, it's a temple." Sora said vaguely as he saw the statue of the Goddess. It was a true piece of art. The Goddess was pictured here as a beautiful angel, her wings spread widely behind her and her body traced with vines and flowers. She was holding up a vase that poured water into the fountain and her smile was beautiful to see. In front of the fountain was a stand with a book and Riku knew it had to be magic. The book looked perfectly preserved and how else could that be the case in this wet heat?

"But why would a demon temple picture the Goddess as an angel?" Riku wondered aloud and Sora blinked. That was odd. Riku had never seen a statue like this before in all his life. Sora picked up the book before Riku could stop him. "Sora!" Riku tried to grab it but Sora easily evaded him and opened it. "That could be cursed!"

"A book? Oh I'm sure it's not." Riku rubbed his head at Sora's confidence. Sometimes he felt like the angel was insane… "It's empty? Oh wow!" Riku looked over Sora's shoulder and felt a wave of forboding as words began to slowly appear on the page, as if someone was writing as the angel-kin held the book. The words were written in an ancient version of temple at first, but then changed to the angels' script. Sora began to read aloud, very curious and unafraid of the artifact.

_The Book of the Belial_

_Long ago, in the dawn of time, the Green Goddess stretched forth her hand. Beneath her she saw many strange and beautiful things but most of all, she saw creatures who could become more than they were. And so she spoke into the ears of these beings and whispered to them of what they might become if only they strived._

_So did our ancestors strive. And so did they stand up upon two legs and learn the making of tools. In the Goddess name, they learned the lessons of fire and killing. They freed their wings and soared into the heavens. They were her chosen people. They were the demon-kin._

"The demon-kin? Her chosen people?" Sora had a bit of trouble with that. He was still an angel after all. But then, the book was likely written from the demon side of things. Riku poked his shoulder.

"Keep going!" He wanted to hear what the book had to say. Sora took a seat and Riku sat beside him as the angel-kin kept reading.

_The demon-kin revered the Goddess and built shrines to her honor. The great caste of shamans spoke to the spirits and attempted to divine the Goddess will from the mute beasts. The high caste of wizards, small in number but great in strength, offered their wisdom in times of need. And the demons were ruled by their lords, great and small._

_In the Goddess name they continued to strive. Making way from their hot cradle of the rainforests they traveled in all directions. They sailed across the sea and made homes on islands. They traveled into the air and found the floating rocks of magic. And they traveled North, into the colder lands. And in so doing something changed._

_Occasionally strange babies were born. With wings as white as the snows of the North and feathered like birds, they seemed to adapt well to the cold. At first the demons were most puzzled by these odd children. But as the change seemed to do no harm they were raised as any other children. Then the great shaman and prophet Belial had a vision and spoke unto the people._

"_These children have been blessed by the Goddess. Strong in magic and pure in heart, let they are her angels. Let them be trained by the shamans and wizards both and they shall be the Chosen priests of the Goddess."_

"Angels come from demons?" Riku felt a bit brain-fried at the revelation and Sora was wide eyed. This completely contradicted the theories of both the angels and the demons. "Keep reading." This was too insane to just be made up and Sora found his doubts about the book slipping away.

_So it was. The angels proved to be strong in magic and wise in their power. Small in number and venerated, they were the priests and priestesses of the Goddess. The demons adored them and they wanted for nothing. Often the demons and angels would breed and the change that had created the angels became common in the demon race._

_So ends the book of Belial._

_The Book of Gabriel_

_For thousands upon thousands of years the angels and demons lived side by side. Always were the angel-kin at the centre of the demon-kin culture._

_In this time period the city states of the demons would often war against each other, for need or for greed. The angel-kin mostly stayed aloof from these conflicts and ministered to the people victimized by them. Many were the praises sung of the selflessness of the angels. The shamans, meanwhile, turned their arts to war and were often caught up in the conflicts of the demon lords._

_Then came a great menace. Descending from the skies, the Golden people promised a great life for all demons and angels. They seemed to be not flesh, but rather fashioned from the purest of gold and they were beautiful as the stars. They promised no wars, no disease and no hunger. Sensing honeyed lies the angel-kin advised the lords to reject the offer. It is the Green Ladies will that the demons strive. To have the pleasures of heaven given to them would be an end to striving and a sure path to damnation._

_Most lords listened but some did not. The horror of their fate and the fate of their people cannot be described. Truly, the Golden ones had not lied, but they had neglected to mention that war, disease and hunger would be eliminated by becoming puppets of a force more great and terrible than any they had ever before conceived. Their very souls ripped from their bodies they became puppets of this power. Just as the Golden ones had before them._

_The rest of the demon-kin and angel-kin recoiled in horror at what had befallen their kin. Great diseases, horrific beyond measure and resistant to magic swept the land. The shamans struggled to destroy their unnatural kin and thus the caste of Champions was born. The angels prayed to the Goddess and frantically researched the monster come to their world. Eventually, with the blessing of the Goddess they created a trap._

_Fashioned of ribbons of light and darkness, the trap was placed deep within the earth. The exact entrance was known only to the angels and a select few of the shamans. Great sacrifices were required but smug in its invincibility, the monster fell into the trap. It screamed and raved as it was chained but could not break free from the power of the Goddess._

_Then the great angel and Prophet Gabriel spoke unto the demons._

"_We shall build a city of angels high in the sky, to keep watch over the land. It shall be our duty to maintain the prison of light and dark and keep the monster contained. If it ever comes to pass that the blights once again surface, we shall come down from the Heavens to end them once again. For this we will need your support. Will you help us?"_

_And so the demons gave willingly to support the angels and thus was the Frozen Lily born, the great city of angels. High in the sky it was placed, beyond the reach of the terrible diseases that had racked the land when the Golden people came. And every year the angels diligently checked the prison to be sure not even the slightest scrap of evil escaped._

_So ends the book of Gabriel._

"But… but I've never heard of a prison." Sora was bewildered. Did the older angels know about this? Surely they must! He just must not have been told yet. Riku was chewing his lip.

"I've never heard of it either… but there's more." More writing was scrolling down the pages. Sora hesitated and began to read again.

_The Book of Set_

_For thousands upon thousands of years this was so. Angels were still born among the demons and they were taken to special shrines, where angels would visit every month to take up the babes and bring them to the Frozen Lily._

_Slowly, the numbers of angels grew. In the times before the angels bred into the demons and thus, most births were not angels. But angel blood was common and the children were often born in odd places. Now the tides turned. Angel bred to angel in the Frozen Lily and they began to become a race apart._

"_Why do we take these children to our lands?" The Prophet Set asked his people. "They are not of us. Let the demons have them." And the angels obeyed his decree, no longer visiting the temples of the demons. Confused by the sudden absence, the demon mothers took their children home to raise. To let other demons know they were not truly angels, they took to dyeing the wings of their children. Thus did black angels appear and thus did the blood of the angels flow more strongly among the demon-kin. For in the end, such children are still angels._

_The rare wizards of the demon-kin began seeking out the angel-like children to teach. All of them had the full gifts of the angels and soon a new caste began to form around the demon-kin wizards and black angels. Thus did the Templars come to be._

_More and more the demon-kin and angel-kin did not speak to each other. More and more they did not know of each other. The demon-kin would beg the angel-kin for help with a drought and receive nothing but silence. They would ask for help with a disease and receive nothing but cold air and lofty wings. The seeds of anger and alienation took root and the demons turned aside. No longer did they even ask. Instead they turned to the Champions and Templars and lords to meet their needs. And while they did their best the Templars lacked the great body of learning that the angels possessed._

_Gradually, the knowledge of the prison was lost to the arrogant angel-kin. The demon-kin also forgot, no longer understanding why they supported the angels city in the sky. And truly, there was no longer a reason. The prison went untouched and uninspected._

_So ends the book of Set._

"Wow! I wonder what will happen with the prison?" Sora asked innocently as Riku felt a chill, looking at the book. He had a feeling…

"Keep reading." Sora blinked at his harsh tone but bent his head again, reading from the book.

_The Book of Azrael_

_For a very long time, despite resentments and irritations, all would be well. The demon-kin population was great and could support the city of angels easily enough. More angel-kin cities were built as the population expanded but the demon-kin could support those too. Great were the fruits of the land._

_But eventually things began to change. The angels had placed the seeds of their destruction and would soon reap what they had sown. The bars of the prison began to fray and the great darkness tested its bonds._

_Diseases pulsed forth. Not all at once but small, steady trickling. The demons had always known disease as a peril of the land but now it became taken for granted. More children died than lived and gradually, this became normal. Demon women had eight children just to see two reach adulthood and that was as they thought it should be._

"That's how it is now. My mother had five children and she was lucky she only lost three…" Riku whispered and Sora looked at him in concern. "Keep reading."

_The population of the demon-kin began to shrink but there was worse. The land that had been fruitful became cold and bitter. Champions sang to the spirits and Templars watered the ground with their own blood and it helped, but not enough. Not when the angels asked for more tribute every year. Never were the angels asked for help. The demons had long ago learned that there was no help to be had from the Frozen Lily._

_The angels, in their arrogance, did not see the suffering of the demons. Blaming the poor harvests on the laziness and malfeasance of the demon-kin they would take from them what they were owed. For the first time in memory the angel-kin and the demon-kin came to blows. The Templars and Champions would extract a heavy toll from the angels but the angel-kin would always be able to strike from the high ground. And so the demons suffered even more._

_Cities vanished into the halls of time, destroyed by the angel-kin or by the dying of the land. The numbers of city-states shrank and shrank again, until but a handful remained. And they would support the full weight of the angels by themselves._

_They would not. They could not. The death of infants and the slow torture of starvation were too much. Driven to hysterical resistance all the demon-kin rose up in rebellion against the tyranny of the angels. War of a type never before seen stalked the land as the angels tried to put their serfs back into their place. With nothing else to eat the demons devoured the fallen angels and to the angel-kin that would be proof of their vile natures._

_And when both were weakened enough, the true darkness snapped free of the prison and evil breathed over the land like a pestilence. Already corrupted by arrogance and indifference, the angels fell before it like grass before the scythe. The Templars and Champions of the demons, weak from the battle against the angels, tried to stop it. They failed._

_When the darkness finished there was nothing but scattered ruins and shattered bones. It battened down to feed on the life of the world and the Green Goddess shook her head and turned away from the failure of her children._

_So it shall be. Unless, you, the reader of this book, can make it be otherwise. So speaks the Goddess._

_So ends the book of Azrael._

The book abruptly vanished and Sora stared at his empty hands, wide-eyed. Riku swallowed and put his arms around him.

"The Goddess… did she just speak to us?" Sora sounded like he couldn't believe it. Then he paled. "Is that what's really going to happen if we don't do anything?" It was hard to believe a young angel-kin and an equally young demon-kin could stop something like that. Riku nodded.

"I think so… Sora, we need to take this to the demons." Sora blinked at him and Riku smiled grimly. "Specifically, the Templars and the Champions. I don't know if they'll believe us but I do know this… the angels won't."

The Templars and Champions were their only real hope now. Riku just hoped it wasn't already too late.


End file.
